The Garden
by i-love-svu
Summary: Behind the Malfoy Manor, there is a garden. Possibly AU, but complete.


**Disclaimer: The prose is the only thing I own.**

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Narcissa Malfoy bowed her head for a moment as her bare feet hit the tiled floor of the kitchen. Her daily viewing of the garden was inevitable, along with the emotions that followed seeing the flowers. The blond sighed, raising her head as she strode to the silver basin to begin the dishes that her husband and son had left for the woman of the household to finish.

She turned the tap on for hot water, and watched as white suds began to fill the sink along with the liquid. Once the water had reached a level that satisfied Narcissa, she gently placed the plates that were sticky with egg residue into the steaming water. Her blue eyes followed the dishes into the soapy basin before moving upward to glance out of the window. Narcissa almost did a double take as she looked at the roses, and spotted a woman on her knees next to the flowers.

Whoever the woman was, she had her back to the house, making it impossible to see her face. The only detail Narcissa could truly make out were the tattered robes that the dark-haired woman was wearing, and the blond witch's eyes widened in shock as she ran out of the kitchen to join the woman in the garden.

"Took you long enough," The woman said hoarsely.

At her words, Narcissa dropped to her knees and began to softly weep. "What are you doing here?"

"Am I not allowed to visit you?"

"You're supposed to be in Azkaban!" Narcissa cried. With crystal tears gliding down her porcelain cheeks, she became angered by the surprise visit. She knew the punishments for prisoners that escaped from Azkaban and were later captured. "I doubt that the guards let you out because of good behavior, Bellatrix."

Bellatrix neared her sister with sympathy etched into her gaunt features. It had been fourteen years since they had last seen each other, and their emotions were bound to arise at some point. Narcissa had simply displayed her feelings first. At a loss for words, the raven haired woman could only sit in front of Narcissa in silence.

"You need to go back." Narcissa's voice was commanding, a tone that Bellatrix had not heard from her sister since their teen years. "Maybe if you go back now, it won't be so bad."

"I'm not going back," Bellatrix replied immediately. As any person who had stayed in Azkaban would, Bellatrix had no intentions of returning. She had escaped, after so many failed attempts, and now her sister wanted her to go back? The mere thought of returning to the daily Dementor attacks make Bellatrix shiver.

Narcissa took Bellatrix's hand within her own, cradling the skeletal limb as if it were a young child. "Bella, you know what they'll do—"

"And you know that it doesn't concern me!" Bellatrix interjected. She wanted to pull her hand from Narcissa's grasp, but her sister's flesh was the first warmth she had felt in over a decade. "Can you not see what they have done to me? And you want me to return?"

Unsure of what to say next, Narcissa studied Bellatrix for a moment. The woman before her was hardly the sister that Narcissa was expecting. Bellatrix's face looked hollow; the space beneath her eyes was a dark shade as if she had not slept in weeks, her skin pale. A mixture of mud and dried blood had seeped through the left sleeve of Bellatrix's robes, leaving a stain that was almost black. She could only imagine the other wounds that were hidden by Bellatrix's robes. Narcissa began to feel sick and had to look away.

It was quiet once again between the sisters, both unsure of where to begin next. It was not very long before a sliver of Bellatrix's old self began to shine through her current state. "You haven't been caring for the roses," She stated, her dark eyes moving to meet Narcissa's blue.

"It's hard to tend to them without you here," Narcissa whispered her reply as if she were sharing a carefully guarded secret.

"Promise me you'll try." Bellatrix slowly moved away from Narcissa, inching her way over to the garden. Upon reaching the roses, Bellatrix carefully began pulling the weeds from the bed, being cautious of the sharp thorns that donned the stems of the white flowers. It was not long before Narcissa join her in the task, although she was not as skilled when it came to navigating the plants to avoid the little barbs.

"I know it's hard, but please try," Bellatrix added after a moment. She dropped her handful of the wild flowers that had begun taking over the roses and glanced up at her sister.

Although gardening had always been something that the two had worked on together, Narcissa nodded. The younger Black sister was hardly as capable as Bellatrix, but an honest effort would be made. She would attempt to care for the flowers on her own, once Bellatrix had made her way to her next stop which was surely the Dark Lord's side. "I promise."

"Good." Bellatrix brushed her hands off, sending small clumps of dirt onto her torn and frayed dress.

"Come on," Narcissa smile, wiping the fresh tears from her face. It did not concern Narcissa that the dirt on her hands had mixed with her tears, creating faint streaks of mud on her cheeks. Oblivious to the earth that was smeared on her face, she stood up and extended her arm to her sister, who was still seated on the ground. "I'll make you dinner and help you clean up."

Taking hold of her younger sister's elegant hand, Bellatrix pulled herself up from the ground. She leaned on Narcissa once she was standing, knowing that her sister would not mind the added weight on her shoulder. She was weak from her stay in Azkaban, but dinner and a bath did sound excellent. The thought of the combination had been enough to aide Bellatrix with slightly more energy, but she was still rather frail. "Thank you," Bellatrix smiled, tilting her head to the side to glance up at Narcissa.

Despite her better judgment, Narcissa smiled back as she wrapped her arm around Bellatrix's waist to support her sister. "You're welcome," She replied softly, perfectly masking the worry that was once again rising her for older sister.


End file.
